gridicon
The Grid - Public Docs
Pages
Join The Grid

Head of Data Products

Love researching Web3, have an understanding of traditional services, have a passion for structured data? Want an opportunity at a funded startup with revenue and with real ownership over how the Web3 ecosystem is mapped and understood? This is an opportunity for someone to really get knee-deep in defining how the industry understands itself, manages mandatory disclosures, and through this build the discovery layer over this data.
We're looking for a Head of Data Products to be our leader responsible for maintaining and evolving our TGS (The Grid Schema) data standards, ensuring research quality, and helping build products to support internal and external users You'll be one of the core guardians of our data taxonomy, help us expand it into both more compliant and technical directions and support all users to interact with our data. We want to ensure every project, asset, and entity is accurately categorized in our ecosystem metadata and that they are proud of it. You will be joining an existing team as a peer and slowly taking over responsibility away from the CEO for this critical role with the opportunity to grow to lead and manage the data team and product vision.
Our product is our GraphQL API endpoint and we are building both internal and external tooling that use the product, to inspire the next generation of clients.
Note: We are looking for the right fit, not the first fit for this role. In your application, the more effort you put in, the higher the chances you will be invited for an interview.

About The Grid's Data

We provide a structured data service and additional tooling all around answering key questions - exactly what is that token or Web3 service and what is the composition of various ecosystems in Web3? We call this ecosystem metadata, and we've already mapped the blue-chip projects in the Solana ecosystem, which you can check out at https://solana.thegrid.id
…and you can see some fun things we built with our data at https://marketmap.thegrid.id and https://solanareport.thegrid.id.
For an example of a profile, see https://solana.thegrid.id/profiles/Jupiter

About This Role

Our product is our data accuracy and comprehensiveness. We're looking for people with research experience and that understands database design, and can maintain our data quality standards and the evolution of TGS schema and ensure this is all communicated as the Web3 ecosystem grows. As we are a startup, this role combines strategic thinking about data categorization with hands-on research and validation work as well as product management experience.
Key Responsibilities:
Research & Data Quality Leadership
Evolve the TGS (The Grid Schema) taxonomy, ensuring it captures new Web3 primitives as they emerge
Support research efforts to accurately categorize projects, products, assets, and entities
Develop and maintain data quality standards and validation rules
Create comprehensive documentation for researchers on categorization edge cases
Review and validate critical data entries, especially for high-profile projects
Project Engagement & Verification
Directly engage with blockchain projects through interviews, calls, and written communication
Review and verify information provided by projects against on-chain data
Build relationships with project teams to ensure data accuracy and completeness
Conduct due diligence calls with founders and teams to understand project nuances
Cross-reference project claims with smart contract deployments, on-chain activity, and blockchain explorers
On-chain Data Analysis
Verify smart contract addresses, deployment dates, and token standards
Understand the difference between what projects claim and what exists on-chain
Use blockchain explorers and on-chain analytics tools to validate information
Identify discrepancies between marketing materials and actual on-chain implementation
Ensure accuracy of technical details like contract standards, chain deployments, and asset relationships
Schema & Taxonomy Management
Maintain consistency across profileTypes, productTypes, assetTypes, and other categorizations
Identify gaps in current schema and propose new fields/relationships
Work with engineering to implement schema changes and validation rules
Ensure our taxonomy remains the industry standard for Web3 ecosystem mapping
Product leadership and planning
Play a key part in product planning, creating tickets and acting as the first line of support for any issues
You will be using the same products that you are leading, goal is to build something you would use every day
Be able to translate a high level vision and bring clarity to the various team members over what should be built, by when, and to what requirements.
Cross-functional Collaboration
Bridge the gap between pure research and data engineering teams
Translate complex Web3 concepts into structured data requirements
Work with customers to understand their data needs and improve our schema accordingly
Collaborate with the data team on pipeline improvements that enhance data quality
Industry Expertise
Stay current with Web3 developments, new protocols, and emerging patterns
Understand the nuances between different blockchain architectures (L1s, L2s, L3s)
Deep knowledge of token standards, DeFi primitives, and governance structures
Track how traditional corporations are entering Web3 and how to categorize them

Colleagues and Resources

As part of the team, you will work alongside (1) our dev team, which includes our senior full stack engineer, our data scientist, and our Principal Data Engineer; and (2) our data team, which processes, analyses, and reviews our data before inclusion in our database, and keeps the data up-to-date. In addition, you’ll have support on vision and guidance directly from co-founder JJ on what we're building, and from our co-founder Jordan on regulatory, compliance, and corporate data. We also have resources already allocated for additional help on a project basis as needed.
We're a Mac based shop and use Linear for project management.

What You'll Bring:

Deep Web3 Knowledge: 2-3+ years actively researching and using Web3/blockchain technology
Traditional Business Experience: 3-5+ years working in traditional corporate environments, understanding enterprise structures, business models, and how established companies operate
On-chain Data Literacy: Understanding the nuances of on-chain vs off-chain data, smart contract interactions, and how to verify information directly from blockchain explorers
Corporate Understanding: Knowledge of how traditional businesses operate and enter Web3, including entity structures and regulatory considerations
Data Mindset: Ability to think in structured data terms and understand database relationships
Research Excellence: Strong analytical skills and attention to detail
Communication: Ability to communicate effectively in English (we're a globally distributed team)
Critical Thinking: Question everything to ensure accuracy, don't take things at face value
Startup Mentality: Comfortable with rapid change and taking ownership
Coachability: Take continuous feedback and action it for self improvement

Your Skills and Qualifications

Required:
3-5+ years experience in traditional business environments (finance, consulting, enterprise software, or similar)
2-3+ years of Web3/blockchain research and analysis
Experience with on-chain data verification using blockchain explorers and analytics tools
Strong understanding of smart contracts, token standards, and blockchain architecture
Experience conducting due diligence, interviews, or vendor assessments
Excellent verbal and written communication for both technical documentation and stakeholder engagement
Demonstrated ability to identify discrepancies between claimed and actual information
Experience with data categorization, taxonomy development, or information architecture
Understanding of JSON schemas and basic data structures
Desire to get deep into existing data standards in Web3 and financial services (such as GLIEF, ISO 24165, EBSI VC framework and many many more …)
Nice to Have:
Basic Python knowledge for data validation scripts
Experience with MySQL and database normalisation rules
Understanding of ETL concepts and data pipelines
Experience with data quality frameworks
Background in library science, information systems, or similar fields
Knowledge of financial markets and traditional business structures
Exposure to traditional KYB or KYC processes, regulatory licensing, and crypto regulation.
Experience with GitHub/Linear and collaborative development workflows
Management and leadership experience

How We'll Work Together

After onboarding, this role balances research work with collaborative schema development. You'll have significant autonomy in defining how we categorize the Web3 ecosystem.
We are looking for a full time commitment.
If you are in the Netherlands already, this is a hybrid role with regular time each week at our offices in Centrum, Amsterdam.
If you are outside of the Netherlands, after an initial period to assess fit for both of us, we can offer support to relocate to Amsterdam. As part of onboarding, we'd ask for a commitment to come to Amsterdam to spend time with us.
There's an opportunity to grow with the role and the company as the team evolves.
Note: If remote, you must have consistent high speed connectivity and availability of at least 6 working hours during The Grid's core working hours of 09:00 to 18:00 CET/CEST (Monday to Friday).

What We Offer

Autonomy, the ability to define how the Web3 industry understands itself, and the opportunity to become the leading expert in Web3 ecosystem metadata. In addition to salary, we can offer an equity/option package aligned with experience, future token allocations, and the opportunity to relocate to The Netherlands.

Application Notes:

When you apply to The Grid for this role, please include:
An example of a Web3 project that's difficult to categorize and how you would approach classifying it in our schema
Your thoughts on what's missing from current Web3 data taxonomies
A brief analysis of a recent Web3 trend and how it might require new data categories

About The Grid

Founded by spoon lover Jonathan Knegtel (founder of BlockData) and dystopian cyberpunk fan Jordan Hatcher (technology lawyer), The Grid provides ecosystem metadata, tooling, and insights about the projects building in Web3.
Made with love and a lot of data in Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Find out more at https://thegrid.id
​
Want to print your doc?
This is not the way.
Try clicking the ⋯ next to your doc name or using a keyboard shortcut (
CtrlP
) instead.